Tarrant County Bail Bonds

When someone gets incarcerated in Tarrant County, Texas, one of the first steps that you need to take is actually locating which jail the defendant is in. This is a very large county that includes the following cities: Fort Worth, Arlington, North Richland Hills, Euless, Bedford, Keller, Haltom City, Hurst, Colleyville, Watauga, and the list goes on. See the embedded Tarrant County Bail Bonds Location & Info sheet below for more information and demographics on this particular county.

Since there are so many municipalities plus a big county jail, asking a bonding company to search for an individual is a big deal. They have other people calling them who already know which jail a person is in and who are ready to pay them to get them released. Knowing which jail a person is in will help you start out on the right foot with any bonding company.

Tarrant County Bail Bonds Locations & Info

Bail Amounts in Tarrant County, Texas

The only way to get bonded out of Tarrant County Jail is to either pay the full amount of bail or hire a Tarrant County bail bonds company or agent. The only way that this can happen is if bail has already been set by the judge. Many people will call a bonding company for help in getting someone out of jail only to realize that since they haven’t had their initial bail hearing, no help can be given at that time and they are then instructed to call back once bail has been set.

During the initial bail hearing, the judge has full discretion to whether a monetary amount is set for bail or if it is denied completely. Furthermore, they also have the option to let the defendant go on their own recognizance, also known as an O.R. bond or signature bond. Read more about this type of bond in the embedded document, Tarrant County Bail Bonds vs Pretrial Release Programs below. During the initial hearing, the judge may set the bail extremely high. Most people don’t know that they have a say in reducing the initial amount down to a manageable sum.

In the state of Texas and Tarrant County specifically, an inmate is required to show that they have made an effort to post bail for the current amount or have attempted to hire a Tarrant County bondsman. The state of Texas also allows for a bail reduction when the inmate has been held for ninety days or more in jail without being formally charged. In exchange for a bond reduction, the defendant may be required to wear an ankle monitor and be subject to other requirements so that the court feels safe letting the person be released from jail until their court date comes around.

Tarrant County Pretrial Release & Bail Bonds

Tarrant County Bail Bonds vs Pretrial Release Programs

Tarrant County Bail Bondsman Questions

Once you've located the person that you're trying to get released from jail, have established that they couldn't be released on a personal recognizance bond, and know that bail has been set by a judge, it's time to call a Tarrant County bail bond company. Most of the bondsmen that work for theses agencies should be licensed to write bonds for most of the major cities. On the off chance that they aren't licensed to write a bond for the jail that you require, then you're going to have to call around a bit until you find one that is. Many of them don't advertise on their website which cities they are licensed in and which they are not. You won't know until you call. Once you do call, though, there are some standard questions that they will ask you.

First off, they'll ask you to spell the name of the defendant. Speak clearly and slowly so no mistakes are made when answering this first important question. The next thing they'll ask is which jail they are in. As covered above, you should already have this one figured out. After that, they are going to ask you for the person's booking identification number, but if you haven't spoken to the person in jail directly, you might not have this information. That's okay. They can still look up the person in the Tarrant County inmate search with just their name. Other key pieces of information you should be able to communicate are the person's date of birth, their current charges, how much the bail is, their criminal history (if they've been arrested before), and if they are a Texas resident or not. This should cover most of what a Tarrant County bonding company will ask you over the phone during your initial conversation. That's just half the battle though. After that, they're going to want to know who will co-sign on the bond to get the person out of jail. The co-signer must meet certain requirements (below).

Qualifying as a Co-Signer on a Tarrant County Bail Bond

Tarrant County Bail Bonds Video

In order to protect the co-signer from future financial loss, and that of the bonding company involved, a co-signer (someone who can vouch for the defendant's appearance in court) needs to meet certain requirements before they are considered "qualified" to sign on the bond.

While for some of you, these qualifications seem very easy to meet, others may find them to be difficult.

It is very important that, under no circumstance, someone lie about their qualifications as this is considered fraud.

To qualify as a co-signer on a Tarrant County, Texas bail bond, a person must make a certain multiple (every bonding company has a different minimum) of the bail amount, be employed for more than a year, be a resident of Texas, be able to physically go in to the bonding company's office to sign the paperwork, have money for the fees, and be over the age of 18 (some companies have a higher minimum age).